


In Your Skin

by stellarmeadow



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Angst, Case Fic, Domestic, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-06-01
Updated: 2011-06-01
Packaged: 2017-10-19 23:46:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 16,349
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/206517
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stellarmeadow/pseuds/stellarmeadow
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The best laid plans of mice and McDanno often go awry, especially when someone's gunning for the governor.</p>
            </blockquote>





	In Your Skin

**Author's Note:**

> This was written by request for Loui for the help_japan auction, and I have so many thanks to give for it. To zarah5, without whose help and encouragement I would not have finished this. To imaginarycircus, for an awesome, fabulous and lightning-quick beta, and to chelseafrew for a second check to fix all the mistakes I made while making the corrections after imaginarycircus was done with it. Any mistakes still there are not for lack of their valiant attempts to beat me into submission!
> 
> And most importantly, to the wonderful, fabulous Loui for the beautiful idea for the fic! I hope you enjoy it, and that it is everything you wanted and more! :):) Thank you so, so much for your trust with this story!!!

Steve pulled the Camaro into its spot, sneaking admiring glances at Danny as he ramped up to full rant mode. He barely remembered what it was like to find that a little scary; he was too distracted remembering all the other things that mouth and hands could do when put to better use.

"I don't see what the problem is," Danny said as they got out of the Camaro and stepped onto the sidewalk. "It's not like you're ever going to need it."

"Maybe, but I'm not getting rid of it," Steve said. "It's history, Danny."

"So is my collection. And it cannot survive in an attic. It gets too hot. Seriously, I thought you understood science. Heat and records do not mix, Steven. Very bad."

"You know, most people just have digital music these days. I mean, when is the last time you even listened to one of those things?"

Danny shrugged. "If you can't get rid of your old football stuff to make room for my record collection, maybe you don't really want me moving in with you is all I'm saying."

Steve turned to stand in front of Danny, blocking him from going any further. "You haven't changed your mind?" he asked, his heart pounding, his vision graying a little, as if he'd just passed his 50m underwater swim test at BUDs.

"I think that's what I was just asking you, babe."

His heart stopped, for one brief second, before his brain identified that particular hint of a smile on Danny's face, searched through his mental file and came up with the meaning. "You're full of shit," Steve said, his heart resuming its regular pace, his shoulders sinking back to their normal level.

"About either of us changing our mind, yes. You're stuck with me." They moved again, rounding the corner. "But not about the record collection."

Steve laughed, thinking for a second before he stopped again, his hand on Danny's arm. "Okay, how about I move my gear up to the attic, and you put your records in the closet in my old room?"

"You see this?" Danny waved his hand between the two of them. "This is what I'm talking about. _Compromise_ , Steven. Compromise is good for the soul."

"So you keep telling me every time you want me to be the one to compromise."

"Oh really? You want to compromise a little more often on who drives my car, then? Because I can--"

Steve's phone rang, an excellent interruption to a Danny tirade that could have relegated Steve to the passenger seat for at least a week. He checked the screen before hitting the talk button. "Chin, what's up?"

"Where are you?"

"We just got back from lunch. We're on our way in."

"Good. We've got a visitor I think you need to meet."

"Apparently we have a visitor," he said, shoving his phone in his pocket as they hurried inside. They found Chin in the bullpen with an unremarkable looking man in his early 50s, Steve guessed, short gray hair, perfectly cut, his suit suggesting a long familiarity with government work.

"This is Commander McGarrett," Chin said to the man. "Steve, this is Charles Patrick."

Patrick's hand was already out when Steve reached him. "This is my partner, Detective Danny Williams," Steve said, noticing the man's firm, confident grip. "What can we do for you, Mr. Patrick?"

"I know the governor puts a great deal of faith in you and your team," Patrick said. "I'm hoping you can help her out."

"The governor sent you?" Steve asked, confused. She usually just called him directly.

Patrick shook his head. "The governor doesn't know I'm here."

"Okay," Steve said slowly, his tone making it clear that an explanation had better be forthcoming.

"Her security team told me not to bother her with this, and I don't want her to know I went around them unless it really is something that she should worry about."

"What exactly _is_ 'it'?" Danny asked.

Patrick picked up a yellow file folder from the computer table. "I screen the governor's more...colorful mail," he said. "Her secretary forwards anything threatening, particularly mean, sexual, you name it, to me. It's my job to look at it and see if anything seems like a credible threat."

"And you think you have one?" Steve asked.

With a curt nod, Patrick opened the folder. "This came in a few weeks ago," he said, handing it to Steve, who held it out so both he and Danny could read it.

Danny frowned at the signature. "Nathan Hale?" he asked, looking up at Steve, then Patrick and Chin. "'I regret that I have but one life to give for my country' Nathan Hale?"

Patrick nodded. "Not his real name, as you might imagine--though I did check into it, just to be sure. There was something about his letter, though, that raised flags."

"What?" Steve asked, looking through the typed page again. It seemed like a fairly typical 'down with government' psycho letter.

"Nothing specific, but I've been doing this a long time and something didn't sit right, so I put it in my watch file. A few days later, this one came." He handed another one to Steve. "At that point I spoke with the new security liaison, but he just laughed it off."

Steve frowned. "He laughed it off?"

"More or less. Watkins would never have done that, but he retired a month ago, and Ailstock doesn't seem to think I know what I'm doing."

Great. Just what they needed, to get stuck in a political pissing match between different arms of the governor's staff. "What did you get after that?" Steve asked.

"He switched to email." Patrick handed Steve another paper, and he leaned in to Danny so they could both read it.

Danny pointed at a sentence. "'A metal arrow to pierce the heart of the figurehead as she hides behind her podium and false claims of good works?'" He looked up at Steve. "That sounds a little too focused for comfort."

"Exactly," Patrick replied. "And the next email two days later came with a description of the governor's lunch."

"What?" Steve took the paper. "He knew what she ate?"

"It's not exactly a secret that the governor favors Salad Nicoise for lunch," Patrick admitted. "Nor is it unusual to see her in a navy suit lunching with businessmen."

Steve glanced up at him. "Was he right?"

"Two hours before that she was in a navy suit having Salad Nicoise with two executives from a company with several large Hawaiian holdings."

Danny frowned. "Her security liaison still didn't think this was worth looking into?"

"By that point Ailstock was convinced I was just grasping at anything because I wanted to prove him wrong. He's not willing to listen. And I need something more solid to convince him. Meanwhile, there is a chance the governor is in danger."

"This is the last one you received?" Steve held up the email.

"It is, but if he stays true to form, there should be another this evening."

Steve looked at the email again. "We can check into it," he said.

"Is that an indication you believe me, or a way of getting rid of me?"

"I don't waste my team’s time," Steve said. "And I don't say things I don't mean."

"Thank you." Patrick handed the folder to Steve. "This contains what little I uncovered when checking into it, but I'm not an investigator anymore. My methods are a little outdated. Do you need anything else from me?"

Chin pointed at the papers Steve still held. "Can I get the full emails electronically?" he asked. "They may have information I can trace."

"I'll send them right over. Anything else?"

"We need to be able to reach you if we have questions," Steve said.

"My contact information is in the file," Patrick replied. "And I'll let you know if I get anything else."

Steve nodded. "I assume it wouldn't do us any good to go to her security team, either?"

"I wouldn't recommend it. Ailstock would love nothing better than to get rid of me, and telling the governor I went around him might just do it."

"Why come to us if it might cost you your job?" Steve asked.

"If you had to choose between keeping your job and keeping the governor safe, which would you pick?"

Allowing a hint of a smile to show on his face, Steve nodded. "Let us know if you get another communication."

 "I will," Patrick promised before hurrying out.

"You think she's really in danger?" Danny asked after he was gone.

Steve was looking through the letters and emails again. "I think Patrick has been doing this a long time...and I think whoever Nathan Hale really is, he made sure he was right about what the governor was doing, and crackpot or not, if he's tracking her down, I don't like it."

"I'm going to do some searches and see if I can find anyone using that name on message boards, or any other connection that might fit. Kono can help when she's back from lunch," he added, already bending over the computer table.

Steve was still staring at the emails, something nagging at him. "What?" Danny asked.

"What?" Steve repeated, looking at him.

"What's with the face?"

"I don't know," Steve said, dismissing it as he put the emails back in the file. "See if HPD has anything unofficial on Nathan Hale. Maybe the name is familiar but there aren't any records. I'm going to go check with a few people."

Danny's mouth quirked up on one side. "Would these be classified spook people?"

"I can't answer that," Steve deadpanned before turning on his heel and heading for his office, allowing himself a smile when Danny couldn't see.

***

Steve had hit three dead ends when Danny stuck his head into Steve's office. "Chin has a trace on the emails," he said, and headed back to the bull pen.

Following quickly, Steve saw an email on one of the overhead screens and a pin-pointed map on another. "You have his location?" he said, automatically checking for his Sig on his hip, his mind halfway to the car.

"Not exactly." Chin looked up from the computer table. "The headers led to an internet café, the Alakea Street Café. Anyone can use the computers, and it's cash only, so no credit card records."

"Cash only?"

"Small business," Chin said with a shrug. "Have you seen the credit card fees lately? Not that much of a surprise."

"Imaginative name," Danny said sarcastically, noting that the map was showing it on Alakea Street.

Steve glared at the screen. "That's just a couple of blocks from here. They've got to have security cameras, right?"

"That's what I'm thinking," Chin said.

"Okay, then." He turned to Danny. "Let's go."

They didn't bother with the car; it would be faster to walk. As they waited for a light to change, Steve went back over what little they knew in his head. "It's too close," he said.

"The internet café?" Danny asked, nodding. "I was thinking the same thing. If he's just trying to rattle the governor, then obviously picking a place close by would help, but if _all_ he wanted was to rattle her, would he want to get this close, risk getting caught?"

Steve shook his head. "You realize you're trying to apply rational thought to someone who is most likely insane?"

"I do it all the time with you," Danny said with a shrug. "Sometimes it actually works, even with insane people."

"I am perfectly sane," Steve said, definitely _not_ pouting at Danny as they hurried across the street.

"Right, I dare you to find a single shrink to prove it."

Steve sniffed. "If a sign-off from a shrink is all you want, I can provide you with several."

"The mere fact that you have multiple sign-offs from shrinks on your sanity proves my point."

"What, you don't think the Navy values my psychological well-being?"

"I am sure they do," Danny said, hands waving a little distractedly as he searched the store fronts. "But just because they signed off doesn't mean there's nothing wrong, it just means they haven't figured out what the problem is yet."

His sidelong glance and slight smirk took any sting out of the comment, not that it would've mattered. It didn't matter how much Danny teased, as long as he was moving in.

"There it is," Danny said, pointing at the small sign for the internet café.

They went inside, the room dark and cool in contrast to the morning sun outside. About half the computers had users; the silence broken only by keystrokes was almost unnerving. One skinny kid, barely a teenager, was standing behind the counter, scrolling through his phone. "How much?" he asked, not bothering to look up as they stopped at the counter.

"Excuse me?" Steve asked.

The kid glanced up. "How much time do you want on the machines?"

"We don't want any time," Steve said, holding up his badge and introducing himself and Danny. "We're interested in someone who's been sending messages from one of them. Do you have any records of your customers?"

"Nope. They pay, they play, they walk away."

"What about credit cards?" he asked, even though Chin had already told them that wasn't an option. His info could be out of date.

"Nope." He pointed at a faded handwritten sign on the counter that said 'cash only.'

Danny drummed his fingers on the table, an unusual sign of impatience with anyone other than Steve. "We're going to need to see your security footage for the last week, then."

The kid laughed. "We don't have security cameras, brah."

"You don't have security cameras?" Danny repeated.

"Nope."

Steve gripped his hands behind his back, nudging Danny's shoulder with his own to signal he was taking over and putting on his best polite face. "Who owns this place?"

He could tell by Danny's expression that he'd failed with the politeness, but it worked on the kid, as he stood up a little straighter, putting the phone down. "My parents," he said.

"Could you get one of them for us?" At Danny's cough, Steve added, "Please?"

The kid blinked. "Yeah. Uh. Be right back." He grabbed his phone and left through the door behind the counter.

"What is it with you and kids?"

Steve frowned at Danny. "What's wrong with me and kids?"

"That's what I'm asking you. You seem to think scaring them is an appropriate conversational method."

He shrugged. "Kids tend to respond well to authority. It's faster."

"You don't talk to Grace like that."

He felt a warm glow inside at the mention of Grace. "She's different. Besides, I'm not questioning her about potential assassins."

"Okay, A, please do not even put that suggestion out there in the air, and B, if something ever does happen involving her, God forbid, you will _not_ be questioning her."

"I wouldn't use that method with her, Danno," Steve said quietly. "You've done a good job. She respects adults; I wouldn't need to. And even if I did...I just wouldn't."

A larger, older version of the teenager appeared through the doorway behind the counter, a washed-out tank top barely covering his beer belly. "I am Mr. Nakura, the owner," he said, sounding as though he'd rehearsed the phrase. "How can I help you?"

Steve explained why they were there, and was told once again, in a much more annoyed tone that they had no security cameras, and that no, they hadn't noticed anyone doing anything weird, but then they didn't exactly monitor their customers--they pay for that kind of privacy, after all.

Tapping his fingers on his thigh and counting to five, Steve looked at Danny. "We need eyes in here."

"You're right." Danny turned to the owner. "We're going to need to install some cameras here for surveillance."

"I told you our customers pay for privacy."

"I understand that," Danny said, polite and cordial, but with an edge that made Steve proud, "but we can either install the cameras or we can have uniformed officers watching the room every hour you're open and see what that does for your business. Which would you prefer?"

The man blinked a few times. "As long as you don't mess up my place and I don't have to pay for anything, you can put in the cameras."

"Thank you. We'll send someone over in a few minutes."

Steve followed him out and back towards HQ. "That," Danny said, shooting a cocky grin at Steve, "is how you get them to cooperate without scaring them."

"He looked pretty scared to me," Steve said, and he was absolutely not letting on how much Danny's tactics turned him on. He'd never hear the end of it.

"Scared of cops driving away all his customers, sure, but not scared I was about to drag him over the counter and waterboard him."

Steve rolled his eyes. "When have you ever seen me waterboard anyone?"

"You dangled a guy off a building." Danny glanced at him as they crossed the road. "I figure there are plenty of torture techniques I have yet to see."

"Are you ever gonna let that go?"

Danny threw him a bright smile. "Never get rid of your best material, babe."

Steve let out a long sigh. "I'm not the one who tied a guy to the roof of his car."

"Really? Because I remember you tying one side."

Schooling his features, Steve turned his head to blink innocently at Danny. "I have no recollection of that."

"Yeah, nice try, but I'm on to your Super SEAL methods. And you, my friend, have a tell."

Steve blinked. "I do not."

"You do."

"What?"

Danny laughed. "What fun would it be if I told you?" he asked as they walked into HQ.

Steve still had no idea what his supposed tell was by the time they reached the bull pen. Kono and Chin were hovering over the computer table. "Find anything new?" Steve asked.

"Nothing," Chin said, frowning down at the screen. "Any luck with security footage?"

"No cameras," Steve said. "Danny convinced them to let us put some in. Can you set them up?"

Chin thought for a moment. "I think I have something that'll work--we can even have it transmitting to our servers here if they don't mind us using the internet."

"Owner's name is Nakura. If he gives you any trouble, call Danny. I'm sure he can _persuade_ him to change his mind."

Chin gave him an odd look. "I'll go set those up," he said.

After one look between Steve and Danny, Kono said, "I'll help you," and followed him out.

"Now they think we're fighting," Danny said, watching their hasty retreat.

Steve shrugged. "You didn't want them to know you're moving in--what better way to keep them off the scent?"

"It's not that I don't want them to know I'm moving in," Danny said quietly, turning to face Steve. "I just don't want them to know _yet_."

"In case it's a disaster."

"No, you ridiculous--I swear, the Navy stole all the screws out of your head, didn't they? Or were you just _born_ like this?"

Steve's breath came out in a quick huff. "Then what's the problem with Chin and Kono knowing? It's not like they're going to tell anyone. Or even care."

"It's just...after, okay? Monday. We can tell them Monday. Just not until then."

"Are you that afraid you're going to back out?"

Danny stared at him. "What?"

"You don't want to tell them because you think you're going to change your mind."

"I..." Danny ran a hand through his hair, pivoting on his heel and walking a few steps away before turning and moving back until he was toe-to-toe with Steve. "If I thought that I was going to change my mind, I'd never have invited myself to live with you."

Steve's brow furrowed. "I asked you to move in. You didn't invite yourself."

"It's funny how you even think that’s true."

"I distinctly remember saying, 'Instead of renewing your lease on that rat trap, you should just move in here.'"

"That _is_ true," Danny said, nodding, "you did say that. I think, however, you failed to notice the fact that somewhere around eighty percent of my stuff was already there, and I'd been bitching for a month about the upcoming rent increase on a place I never used."

That brought Steve up short as he thought about it. "You manipulated me," he said, little moments from the past couple of months combining to make a complete picture.

"Oh, look who's finally figured something out," Danny said with a smirk.

"You wanted to move in all along. Why didn't you just say something? Directly," Steve added, sensing Danny's objection even before his mouth was open.

"Because, unlike some people, I have manners, and I know it is polite to wait to be asked," Danny said, stepping closer until he had Steve trapped between his body and the computer table. "Also, I, uh..." he looked at the V in Steve's t-shirt, "I wasn't sure you were quite ready to officially have someone else living there."

Steve considered that for a moment. "What would you have done if the lease had come up and I hadn't asked?"

"The plumbing in that place is a hazard," Danny said, looking up through his lashes. "An _accident_ was bound to happen any day."

"You would've destroyed the apartment just to get me to invite you to move in?" He wasn't even sure what to do with that. He'd felt almost like he'd coerced Danny into moving in; finding out he wanted to be there that badly was...a little overwhelming.

Danny shrugged. "I'd be doing the other tenants a favor, bringing such dangerous plumbing to the attention of the government."

"If you say so," Steve said, distracted now, his hands moving down Danny's sides to rest on his hips. "But if you want anything else, maybe you should try asking."

"You mean like if I want you to kiss me?"

"That is one thing you shouldn't even have to ask for," Steve said, already leaning in to capture Danny's lips.

He'd only managed a short kiss when Danny's phone started to ring and he stepped back, eyes on Steve as he answered the phone. "Chin? Tell him if he doesn't, _I_ will come stand at his door from open to close with my gun and badge on my hip." Danny waited for a few seconds. "Good. See you then."

"Owner giving him trouble?" Steve asked.

"Not anymore," Danny replied, moving closer once more. "Now, where were we?"

"You were just about to tell me why you don't want anyone to know you're moving in."

Danny closed his eyes for a second. "I was kind of hoping you'd forgotten that," he admitted, looking at Steve's ear.

"I'm a trained investigator." Steve kept his voice carefully light, as if he wasn't slightly terrified of the answer. For all that Danny said he had manipulated the whole move, his reluctance to tell anyone wasn't exactly comforting.

"Or something," Danny muttered, looking down for a moment before raising his head to meet Steve's gaze. "It's stupid, okay, but given that any day working with you has a higher than normal probability of ending in death or dismemberment, I don't want to jinx anything by letting the cat out of the bag until it's a done deal, all right?"

Which made far more sense, and was far less scary, than all the things Steve had been imagining. In fact, given the problems Danny had had with his marriage, the only thing that did annoy Steve about it is that he'd had to wring the confession out of Danny. "Okay. You could've said."

"I told you," Danny said with a shrug, "it's stupid. Superstition is ridiculous."

"So is a tie in Hawaii and you cling to that," Steve teased.

"You realize you're about to have all my ties in your closet?"

"I already have all your ties in my closet."

Danny shook his head. "Not the vintage collection, babe."

"They can go with your vintage record collection."

"I bet I can convince you otherwise," Danny said, moving closer.

Steve bit his lip, reaching out with reluctance to keep Danny at arm's length. "Chin and Kono will be back soon."

"Okay, I know I said I didn't want to hand out change of address forms just yet, but you do realize they _are_ trained investigators, right? It's not like they don't know we're..." he flapped his hand between the two of them, unusually lost for words, "a _thing_ ," he finished finally.

"I know," Steve said quietly, tightening his grip on Danny's biceps just a little, "but they're trained investigators, to use your own words. You think they're not going to figure out we're more than just 'a _thing_ ,' as you so eloquently put it, if they come in and find us making out on the computer table?"

Danny sighed, sagging into Steve's hold just a bit. "I hate it when you’re right."

"No wonder you're always so angry," Steve said lightly. "Besides, we have a potential assassin to find."

"Right." Danny sighed again. "Back on the trail of Nathan Hale we go."

***

They went back to their desks, but Steve hadn't had any luck by the time Chin and Kono returned, and one look at Danny's face told him they were in the same boat. "I don't know what you said to Nakura," Chin said, "but the man's afraid of you."

Steve smirked, but Danny ignored it. "I just figured out what he wanted least and threatened to give it to him if he didn't cooperate." He gave Steve a pointed look before adding, "It's called police work."

"Bungee cords, Danny. He was sliding all over the place."

"Enough, you."

Kono shook her head at them. "Glad to see you made up while we were gone," she said.

Steve didn't miss the way Danny flinched a little at that. "So we're all set to access the cameras here?" Steve asked Chin.

"With the three cameras I put up, we have coverage on every computer, all saving to our own system," Chin said, his fingers flying over the computer table screen. One by one the three overhead monitors showed clear live video of what was going on at the café. "Better than normal security camera footage, too. If we get our guy on film, we should have a good image to run through facial recognition."

"All right," Steve said, "there's not much else we can do, unless you've gotten anywhere with internet message boards?" At Chin's headshake, Steve made a show of checking his watch. "I say we take off for the night unless we hear something from Patrick. If this guy moves, it's going to be a long weekend, and we could all use a little break."

He wasn't sure he was fooling either Chin or Kono with his casual tone, but even if he had , Danny's studious ability to look anywhere but at any of them would've given it away. The cousins exchanged a look, then Kono smiled. "Whatever you say, boss. Have a good night."

She and Chin were discussing a relative's new restaurant as they walked out of the room, leaving Steve and Danny alone. "Subtle," Danny said, grinning at Steve.

"Look who's talking," Steve said, imitating Danny's behavior, gaze darting around the room, hands in his pockets, adding in some whistling for effect. "That wouldn't even work on Grace."

"Very funny," Danny said. "Are you going to hang out here all night and mock me? Because I seem to remember I have some things to get out of my place before I turn over the keys."

And okay, Steve knew his smile hit goofy in an instant, but he could tell by Danny's matching one that he was okay with that. "Let's go," Steve said, not caring that his voice was a little rough.

***

They picked up Steve's truck to have more room. "I have to admit," Steve said, as he pulled up in front of Danny's building and killed the engine, "I will not miss driving through his neighborhood."

"You sure spent a lot of time coming over here for someone who doesn't like it."

Steve laughed. "I wasn't coming here for the ambiance."

"Oh, really? So what was it, then? The coffee on the corner?"

"Their coffee sucks."

"Mr. Kapule's singing, right?"

"Mr. Kapule's singing sucks, too." Steve leaned in, his nose less than an inch from Danny's cheek. "The only thing that doesn't suck about this place is you."

Danny's grin was wicked. "Oh, but I do, and if you've forgotten that this quickly, clearly I'm not doing it well enough."

Dipping his head just enough to nose Danny's cheek, Steve lowered his voice. "Believe me, I couldn't forget that."

He felt Danny shiver. "Stuff," Danny said, then cleared his throat. "My stuff. In," he pointed at the apartment, "there."

"Right."

They got out of the truck, Steve enjoying the view as he let Danny lead the way into the apartment for the last time. Everything was already boxed up, just a few last minute items to pack before they could load the boxes into the truck bed.

When it was nearly full, they took one last tour around the apartment to ensure nothing was left behind. Danny stopped at the door and looked around. "I can't say I won't miss it a little," he said, leaning into Steve's shoulder with his own.

"Which part, the roaches or the bad plumbing?"

"The memories. Like Christmas." He looked up over the doorway, where there'd been mistletoe that Grace had insisted needed to go over the door. "That was, uh...quite the mind-blowing present."

"It was just a kiss," Steve said, thinking back on the almost chaste press of his lips to Danny's. He'd waited until everyone else had left, moved to the door, and let his hands slide along Danny's waist as he'd kissed him once, softly, said, 'Night, Danno,' and walked out without waiting to see what the fallout would be.

He hadn't expected the fallout to be fifteen minutes after he'd gotten home, or in the form of Danny storming through the door and practically molesting Steve right on the couch because they couldn't even wait to get upstairs.

"We packed the memories to take with us," Steve said. "Let's go make some new ones."

Danny nodded, locking the door with one long look through the window before turning and following Steve back down the stairs. Steve waited while Danny dropped off the keys with the landlord, and then they were in the truck, making the short drive home.

The boxes didn't take long to move into Steve's old room, with Danny promising to sort through them soon. "I have better things to do tonight," he said, pulling Steve into his arms.

"I can think of a few," Steve murmured against Danny's lips in between kisses. "But we should eat first."

"We're like this and you want to eat?" Danny said, pressing a little harder into Steve's body. "The honeymoon's over already."

Steve laughed, ignoring the flutter in his pulse at the mere mention of a honeymoon. Marriage was not a subject they'd even joked about--though whether that unspoken restriction was off the table now that Danny had moved in without incident was something he might have to think about. "I was going to make you dinner," Steve said between kisses.

"I am sure that your dinner plans are excellent," Danny muttered against Steve's lips, "but how about we have dessert now, and you can make me dinner later?"

Steve let Danny maneuver their bodies out the door and down the hall to their room without letting go. It wasn't until he fell backwards onto the bed that he looked up at Danny with a frown. "Did you just manipulate me again?"

"Who, me?" Danny said with a smirk, slowly taking off his tie.

Steve was distracted by the deft motions of Danny's fingers, then the slow slide of silk out of the knot, and off Danny's neck. "Yes, you," Steve answered, belatedly, then cleared his throat. "You just did it again, didn't you?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

Licking his lips as Danny unbuttoned his shirt and slid it off, Steve tried to remember what he was saying. "You're evil," he said as Danny crawled onto the bed, throwing one leg over both of Steve's to straddle Steve's thighs. "Just how long have you been doing that, anyway?"

"Steven?" Danny said, his hands going to work on Steve's fly.

"Yes, Danny?"

"Shut up."

"All you had to do was ask."

***

Steve was still drying the ocean off his skin when he stepped back into the bedroom. He couldn't help but smile at how Danny had managed to take over the entire bed after Steve had gotten up. Naked, with the covers kicked off, sprawled across the mattress like he'd always been there and was never planning to leave. Not that Steve had any problems with that plan. He was completely on board with that plan, in fact.

He dropped his towel and his shorts as he crossed the room, leaning onto the bed with one knee before shaking his hair over Danny's back, spraying just enough water on him to wake him up. Danny started, slowly curling into himself until he could roll onto his back. "You are evil," he said, his voice thick with sleep, but a smile on his face nonetheless.

"It's time to get up," Steve said, leaning down for a kiss.

"I spent a lot of the night up," Danny muttered against Steve's lips, his hands sliding across Steve's back to pull him closer.

"Not _that_ kind of up," Steve teased. "Though later, I would be happy to--" Steve's cell phone rang, and he sighed, fumbling around on the nightstand without looking until he found it. He pushed the screen haphazardly and hoped for the best as he held the phone to his ear. "McGarrett," he said, squirming out of the way of Danny's fingers as they moved lower, as Danny's lips went to work on Steve's shoulder.

"Commander, it's Charles Patrick. There was another email late last night."

"What did the email say?" Steve asked, extricating himself from Danny's touch with an apologetic look.

"More of the same, with another metal arrow reference, and something about the future. I've forwarded it to Detective Kelly, and he said he received it."

"Thank you. We'll let you know as soon as we have anything on it," Steve said and hung up. "That was Patrick," he said, turning to Danny. "Another email came in."

Danny frowned. "This morning?"

"Last night. Chin should already have it. Let's go."

***

Chin was already hunched over the computer table when they got to HQ. "I've got the time stamp," he said, flicking the email up on one of the overheads for Steve and Danny to read. "Kono's going through the footage from last night to see if she can pick out our guy based on the timing."

Steve glanced over to see Kono leaning into her computer at her desk, eyes intent on the screen. "Was it busy last night?"

"A little," Chin replied. "Apparently anonymity on the internet is very popular on a Friday night."

"Go figure," Danny said, moving closer to the screen. "'The metal arrow draws nearer so that she may not corrupt the future,'" he read. "Why is it they never just say, 'I'm going to shoot her tomorrow at noon,' or something?"

"Then we'd be out of jobs, wouldn't we?" Steve asked, reading the email over again.

"I would be," Danny said. "They still need someone to beat them into submission and drag them to jail, though, so your job would be safe."

"You underestimate your worth," Steve said, flashing Danny a grin. "They still need someone to book 'em, Danno."

Before Danny could do much more than sputter, Kono rushed into the room. "Okay, I think I have something," she said, nudging Chin out of the way and taking control of the computer table. "Given the time frame, I narrowed it down to these four," she said, as four frames from the security footage appeared on the overheads. "I ran those through facial recognition, and came up with this guy."

One of the frames stayed up, while the others were replaced with a driver's license with a picture that looked to be the same man. "Joseph Bremmer, 54 years old, from Oregon. Ex-Army, received a dishonorable discharge for shooting his commanding officer in the leg in 1998."

"Over what?" Steve asked.

"Apparently it was a disagreement over a mission. Most of the report was redacted, but whatever it was, it sent Bremmer over the edge. He's been a crusader ever since."

"Crusading for what?" Danny asked.

"Whatever hits him at the moment, apparently. The last few years it's been how women are ruining the government. He runs a blog under the name Paul Revere--that's why we couldn't find anything on Nathan Hale. It's a new one for him."

Steve frowned at the screen. "Do we have an address?"

"Not yet," Kono said. "He's been flying under the radar for several years. Not even sure when he left the mainland and came out here."

"Damn," Chin said, looking at his tablet. "Call just came in to HPD. Charles Patrick is dead."

"What?" Steve turned the words over in his head, but it still took a moment to process. "How?"

Chin was reading his screen. "He was found in his home office, GSW to the head."

"Okay, Danny and I are going to check it out. Chin send Patrick's address to my phone," Steve said, following Danny to the door. "And get me an address on Bremmer," he called over his shoulder.

***

The house wasn't far, and HPD was still putting up crime scene tape when Steve pulled the Camaro up to the curb. He nodded to one of the patrolmen, whose name he couldn't quite remember, as he stepped into the house, with Danny close behind.

Steve looked around the room and saw only one person not in HPD uniform, a man in a suit, standing across the room Patrick's body, talking with a cop. He ignored that for the moment in favor of Patrick's body, collapsed on the floor, gun in his lifeless hand. The cause of death was obvious, but something about it didn't make sense. He'd been so focused on making sure the governor was safe, even if it cost him his job. Why would he suddenly kill himself?

He wouldn't.

A glance at Danny was all Steve needed to see they were on the same page. Steve jerked his head toward the man in the suit, and they crossed the room in time to hear him say, "...arrived and found him like that."

"You found the body?" Steve asked.

"I did." The man held out his hand. "James Ailstock, from the governor's security detail."

Steve shook the offered hand, his face blank. "Lieutenant Commander McGarrett, Five-0," he said, then introduced Danny. "Why were you visiting?"

"Patrick called me early this morning to tell me he thought there was a plot against the governor. The whole thing is quite ridiculous, but out of respect for his years of service to her, I came to see him, and found him like that."

Ailstock couldn't quite look at the body, Steve noticed, just nodding his head in that general direction. Steve frowned at that--he didn't seem like he should be the squeamish type. "When did you get here?" Steve asked.

"About half an hour ago. I'd gone to the gym and the range early this morning to get in some exercise and practice, and he called just as I was finishing up at the range."

"What did he say to you on the phone?" Danny asked.

"Just that he had some information. But nothing about what it was." He half-turned his head in the direction of the body again. "Poor man. Clearly the stress of seeing things that weren't there took more of a toll on him than anyone realized."

Steve felt his hand balling into a fist and consciously relaxed it. "Thank you for your time, sir. Is there somewhere we can reach you later if we have any other questions?"

"Certainly." He pulled out a card and handed it to Steve. "My cell phone number is on there. You should be able to reach me there anytime. You can find me with the governor the rest of the day--I'm headed to her office as soon as I'm done here."

"Thank you." Steve tapped Danny on the arm and nodded toward the door, waiting until they were back out to the Camaro to speak. "So, guilty?"

"As sin," Danny said, "but how do we prove it?" They climbed into the car and closed the doors. "I'm sure he has a rock solid alibi between the gym and the range," Danny said, turning in his seat to face Steve, his hands slicing through the air as he made his point, "and it's not like gunshot residue would even make a difference if he'd just come from legally shooting a gun in front of witnesses."

Steve focused on the road, pushing the gas a little harder than strictly necessary. "Nobody has a rock solid alibi if it's a lie," he said. "And there has to be more evidence there, we just haven't uncovered it yet."

"We'd better uncover it fast then," Danny said. "Because if Ailstock is involved in this thing against the governor, then he thinks that his only stumbling block has been removed. They could go after her at any time."

***

They were barely inside the bull pen when Steve started talking, "Chin, Kono, I want everything you can find on James Ailstock from the governor's security detail."

"On it, boss," Kono said.

"Any luck on Bremmer's address?"

Chin nodded. "A friend at HPD has a snitch he thinks can help. I should hear something in the next half hour."

"Okay, James Ailstock," Kono said, flicking some information off the computer table and onto the big screens. "Formerly Captain James Ailstock, left the Army in 2004 and joined a private security firm that the governor contracted when she first took office. About a month ago she hired Ailstock to take over from her former security liaison. He oversees the contract with the security firm as well as threat assessment, advance work...he is more or less single-handedly responsible for her safety."

"I can see why Patrick didn't want to go up against this guy without a stack of evidence," Steve said.

"And we don't either," Danny reminded him.

Steve's retort died as he saw how Kono was staring at the picture of Ailstock. "What's wrong?"

"He looks familiar. I'm trying to--oh." She started tapping away furiously on the computer table, pulling up the security footage of Bremmer from the night before. "Okay, here's Bremmer on the computer, sending the email." She hit rewind, letting it play until he stood up and backed toward the door, brushing against someone and making brief eye contact when Kono stopped the video. "There. Look familiar?"

Steve looked closer. "Is that Ailstock?"

"Looks like it," she said. "I knew I'd seen him recently, and not with the governor. I saw him when I was going through this footage." She hit the button to rewind slowly and they watched as he backed up and sat down at the same computer Bremmer was about to use.

"They used the same computer," Danny said. "Any chance he sent the email and Bremmer's just a patsy?"

Chin sighed. "Would be nice, but the timestamps don't add up for that. More likely they're in it together. Maybe they've been using the computer to pass information without being seen together."

"Can you find a connection between the two of them?" Steve asked.

Kono had been tapping away again, and made a triumphant sound. "Got it," she said, hitting the virtual keyboard a little harder on her last stroke. "Bremmer and Ailstock served together in Afghanistan." Steve ignored Danny's look at the mention of Afghanistan. "Some private accounts of the mess that got Bremmer booted hint that Ailstock was involved, but there's nothing on his permanent record. If he was involved he's gone to great lengths to keep it a secret."

"Something like that could ruin his nice, cushy career," Danny said. "I'm betting he'd go to great lengths to keep it quiet."

"So either he and Bremmer are friends and he's working with him secretly and doing a much better job of lying than I'd give him credit for after his performance this morning..." Steve said.

"Or he's guilty of something from back then and Bremmer is blackmailing him into helping," Danny finished.

Steve nodded at Danny, hiding a smile at his ability to finish Steve's sentences, then looked at Chin. "We need to know where Ailstock has been every minute of the last few weeks. Anything in his activities that might give us a clue what they're planning."

"Shouldn't we warn the governor?" Kono asked.

"Ailstock is already with her by now," Steve replied, checking his watch. "We can't afford to let him know that we're on to him--if he has so much to lose that he's willing to help kill the governor, there's no telling what he'll do." Steve thought for a moment. "Get her itinerary, but do it quietly. Let's see if there's anything that looks suspicious when combined with Ailstock's movements over the past few days."

Chin's phone buzzed, and he checked the screen. "We've got a possible address on Bremmer."

"Send it to me," Steve said, tapping Danny on the arm as he headed for the doors, not having to wait to know Danny would fall perfectly in step beside him. "We'll check it out. You two figure out where and when they're going to make their move."

***

The house was less than ten minutes from HQ. Danny was out of the car before it was completely stopped, Steve right behind. They hurried to the door, and Steve put his hand on his gun as Danny knocked. When there was no answer he knocked again, waiting a good fifteen seconds before giving Steve a resigned look.

Steve tried the handle, surprised to find it unlocked. They moved quietly inside, checking each room and closet around both sides of the entryway before giving up, Steve noticing, not for the first time, how easily they covered one another and moved in perfect patterns. He'd trained with teams for weeks to get that kind of perfection, but they had just fallen into it without words. It wasn't something he wanted to lose.

"He must've left in a hurry if he didn't bother to lock the door," Danny said.

"Maybe," Steve said, bringing his focus back to the room and noticing the mess covering the dining room table. "Or maybe he's not planning on coming back."

The sinking feeling in his gut increased as they stepped closer to the table and he recognized the old-fashioned maps and layouts used to plan a strategic op. "Looks like we found his plan," Danny said, pulling out his phone.

"Did Kono get the governor's itinerary?"

"I'm checking now....yes. She emailed it to me." Danny tapped his phone screen a few times. "She's at Hawaii Medical East to open the new children's wing. Her speech starts...well, now."

"Speech in the courtyard?" Steve asked, picking up a map for Hawaii Medical Center that showed sightlines into the courtyard.

Danny turned his head from the phone to look. "Yeah, how did you--shit."

They ran out the door, Danny calling Chin before they even made it to the car, telling him to call HPD and meet them. "You go for the governor," Steve said as they pulled up to the center. "I'll find Bremmer."

They screeched to a stop, not bothering to close the doors on the Camaro as they ran straight to the courtyard. Steve stopped at the edge, checking the windows. A glint that wasn't sunlight off a window caught his attention, and he saw the edge of a barrel as he ran for the door into the nearest building.

He was two flights up and down the hall just outside the room when he heard a shot from the courtyard, followed by a shot from just behind the door of the room. He burst through the door in time to see Bremmer on his knees, quickly stripping his rifle. "Freeze! Drop the gun!" Steve said, tuning out the screams from below and holding his gun on the asshole, kind of hoping he'd try to run.

After a moment when he looked like he might grant Steve's wish, Bremmer dropped his rifle and put his hands on the back of his head. "Smart move," Steve grunted, hurrying over and grabbing Bremmer's arm, dragging him none too gently to a nearby radiator and cuffing him to it. He zip tied the man's leg to it, just for good measure.

Bremmer secured, Steve looked out the window but couldn't see anything clearly on the platform. More importantly, he couldn’t see Danny anywhere in the mess of people. "Stay," he yelled over his shoulder at Bremmer, as he ran out the door and down the stairs.

Even from the ground he couldn't see anything but commotion on the makeshift stage at the far end of the courtyard. He ran through, yelling "Five-0, out of the way!" and not caring who he shoved in the process. When he reached the stage, his relief at seeing the governor had been whisked away and Ailstock was on the ground, shot in the chest and unmoving, was short-lived. Danny, pale and too still, was lying not far away, his eyes closed, his hand over a wound in his left shoulder, his palm not nearly big enough to cover the bloodstain under it. The blood seeping out underneath made Steve nauseous.

"Danny!" Steve knelt down beside him, shooing away the woman who'd been trying to help. "Go find a damn doctor if you want to help," he ground out, before turning his attention fully on Danny. Someone had put a jacket under Danny's shoulder, wrapping it around to cover the front of the wound as well. Steve put one hand on Danny's shoulder, moving Danny's hand out of the way and applying pressure to the wound. His other hand found its way into Danny's hair. "Hey, come on, open your eyes! Danny, come on!"

He saw Danny bite his lip, then his eyes opened briefly. "Stop yelling," he mumbled. "It hurts."

"I know it does, babe, but you have to stay awake, all right? Stay with me."

Steve felt the little headshake more than he saw it. "Sleep," Danny muttered. "Tired."

"No, no, no!" This couldn't happen. He couldn't lose Danny, not like this. Not at all. "Stay awake, or I'm going to yell at you until you punch me!"

"Steven," Danny grumbled, squinting up at him, "I hate you so much right now."

"You love me and you know it." They both knew it, though now that Steve thought about it, they hadn't really said as much.

Danny's eyes opened a little wider, blinking heavily, but definitely registering more of what was going on. "Not the time or place, Steven."

"Hey, you were the one who went and got yourself shot after you moved in. I didn't exactly choose the time and place. You told me you were worried something would happen _before_ you moved in. "

"McGarrett, I swear to God, if you don't shut up, I will haunt your ass."

"My ass, huh? Why am I not surprised that's the body part you'd go for?"

Danny's eyes went wider. "Steven. I will hit you."

"Fine, go ahead, if it'll keep you awake."

Finally a doctor arrived, two orderlies and a stretcher close behind. "Let us do our work, Commander," the doctor said, her smile kind, and her hands firm as they pushed Steve's away. He let go of his grip on Danny's shoulder and hair and sat back just enough to let her work.

He didn't realize he had his hand on Danny's leg until they went to move him onto the stretcher and he lost contact, feeling strangely unanchored as he followed them off the podium.

A light touch on his arm stopped him, and he turned to blast the person who dared to try to keep him from following Danny, the words stopping just short of his tongue as he saw it was the governor. "Is he going to be all right?" she asked.

"He will," Steve said, refusing to even consider any other options.

"I see." The governor smiled. "I hadn't realized he'd changed addresses."

Oh. Shit. "He, uh, just moved last night. His rent was getting raised, and frankly, that place is a fire hazard, Governor. You should have someone look into it."

"I'll see what I can do," she said. "Nice of you to let him stay with you."

Steve shrugged, his hand rubbing at the back of his neck as he looked towards the side doors they'd disappeared through with Danny. "I have a lot of space. There didn't seem to be any point in him finding somewhere else to sleep, especially since we're usually together most of the time when we're awake. Working," he added, with emphasis.

Jamison laughed. "Of course. Strictly convenience," she said. "I understand completely."

And she sounded as if she understood more than she should, and he hoped to God she never mentioned that to Danny. "You might not want to say anything to him. He's very sensitive about accepting my 'charity,' as he called it."

"Understood. Go see how he's doing. Let me know."

"Thank you, Governor," he said with a nod, running for the hospital.

He ran into Chin by the doors. "I just saw them take Danny in--what happened?"

"He's been shot, but he was conscious when they took him away. Bremmer's double-strapped to a radiator up there," Steve said, jerking a thumb at the building. "Second floor, room 207. Go get him and throw him in the deepest, darkest cell you can find. I'll let you know when I know something about Danny."

Steve opened the doors and ran through the halls he knew far too well at this point to get to the ER. "Detective Williams?" he asked the nurse behind the desk. She directed him around the corner to curtain six, where he found Danny, now shirtless, the gauze taped to his wound still more bloody than Steve was comfortable with.

His eyes were brighter, though Steve attributed that in part to whatever was probably being pumped into the IV line he could see going into Danny's left hand. He tried to ignore the other one pumping blood into his body, his stomach still unhappy with the quantity of blood he'd seen surrounding Danny on the platform. Too much, entirely too much, and no matter much bloodshed he'd seen in his career, this had been different. It was Danny.

A nurse was standing over Danny, but she looked up at Steve as he moved further into the room. "I'm sorry, sir, but you can't be here."

"You're new here, aren't you?" Steve said, putting as much of a threat into his tone as he could.

Danny rolled his eyes and sighed. "It's fine," he said to the nurse, his voice rough and a little slurred, but still Danny. "He's family." Steve barely had time to process that, something warm radiating from his chest throughout his body at those words, before Danny continued. "Besides, he'd probably either shoot you or call the governor to override you if you tried to kick him out, so trust me, it's safer for everyone if you let him stay."

"I would not shoot her," Steve said. At Danny's raised eyebrows, Steve gave up and looked at the nurse. "I wouldn't shoot you," he said, as he saw her wide eyes looking at his Sig. "I wouldn't."

"And the governor?" Danny said, sounding as smug as he looked when Steve's gaze went back to him.

Steve nodded. No point in arguing that one. "He's right about the governor."

"I'm going to go get the doctor," the nurse said, edging past Steve, keeping as much distance as she could.

"Way to go, Danno," Steve said, moving closer until he was standing by Danny's bedside, unable to stop himself from putting his hand on Danny's good shoulder. "Scare the new nurses from the start so they listen."

A smile tugged at the corner of Danny's mouth. "Nurses and children respond to authority," he said. "And apparently threats are the quickest way to get them to do what you want. Or so I've heard."

Steve felt himself relax a little at the teasing. "How're you doing?"

"Other than being a human pin cushion? I'll live."

"What happened?"

Danny sighed and closed his eyes for a second. "Ailstock saw me coming," he said, opening his eyes again. "He pulled his gun, and I shot him, and then I heard another shot, and I fell, and, well," he waved a hand at his bandaged shoulder. "Bremmer, I assume, since I saw Ailstock on the ground nearby."

"Yeah, Bremmer," Steve said with a nod. "I got to him just after he got off a shot. I didn't know he'd hit you, though, or--"

"Probably for the best," Danny said, eyes closing again for a few seconds, before he opened them once more. "I would hate to have to do the paperwork after you shot him for no reason."

"I think shooting you is a perfectly valid reason to shoot him," Steve responded. "Besides, I'd do the paperwork."

Danny's eyes went wide at that. "I'm not dying, you know."

"I know."

"Are you sure? Because I am quite certain that the only thing that would get you to do paperwork is my untimely demise."

Steve swallowed. "Can we maybe not talk about the concept of your demise, timely or untimely, right now?"

Danny's lips softened into a small smile. "Sure," he said, his good hand reaching out to hook two of his fingers into Steve's pocket.

"Thanks."

"Hey," Danny said softly, wearing that smile that usually landed them on the nearest horizontal surface. "I don't hate you."

"I know you don't."

"You might've been right about the other, though."

Steve thought back, trying to remember what he'd--oh. "Oh. Yeah, uh...me, too."

"I knew that. I'm a detective, remember? Also, here's a question: If you 'me too' me then how come you never let me drive my car? Because I would think anyone who 'me tooed' me would let me drive my own car."

"Did they tell you what drug they gave you?" Steve asked. The last time Danny had been like this, there'd been a couple of cases of beer and a very long night on the beach behind Steve's house involved.

The doctor came in before Danny could respond, the nurse still eyeing Steve carefully as she walked in, sticking close to the doctor. "How are the drugs treating you, detective?" the doctor asked cheerfully.

"I haven't felt this good since then night we--" Danny broke off and gave Steve a look that made Steve drop his hands in front of his fly. "I'm good," Danny said, instead of finishing his original sentence.

The doctor laughed. "Glad to hear it. Let's see if we can get you patched up. They've got an OR ready for you."

Steve frowned. "He's going to need surgery?"

"Just cleaning him up and making sure there are no surprises," she said. "It looks like a through and through, so the surgery shouldn't be a long one."

"Can I watch?"

"We don't usually let friends and family in the observation room."

Before Steve could make any threats, Danny headed him off. "You're wasting your time arguing with him, doc," he said. "Besides, he could probably take a bullet _out_ of me using twigs and a straw and bandage me with a leaf and duct tape if he had to. It's not like he's squeamish about it."

After one long look at Steve, the doctor shook her head. "Fine. But you watch quietly, and if you're asked to leave, you do so without argument," she ordered.

He nodded, only realizing after Danny's amused look that he'd immediately moved into the standard 'at ease' military position. "Apparently it's not just nurses and children," Danny teased.

"Shut up."

An orderly arrived to wheel Danny to the operating room. "Carol will show you where you can get cleaned up, and then to the observation room," the doctor said, nodding at the nurse, who gave Steve a slightly frightened glance, but motioned for him to follow her.

Steve looked down at his hands, only just realizing he still had blood on them. Danny's blood, he thought, that strange nausea coming back again. He ducked into the men's room and washed it off quickly, trying not to look, before hurrying back out to where Carol was waiting.

"Sorry about earlier," he said, as she led him down the hall. "Danny likes to tease, but I promise, I'm perfectly safe to any non-criminal."

He saw her relax a little. "I'm not used to guns," she admitted.

"That's a good thing," he said, wondering if maybe his life would be different if he wasn't quite as used to them either. But then he might not have met Danny, and he couldn't imagine any life where that didn't happen, so there was no use dwelling on it.

She left him in the observation room. He texted Chin his location, and that Danny was in surgery while they wheeled Danny into the OR below and hooked him up to all sorts of machines. Steve frowned at the need for so many. They'd said it was a quick surgery, and it hadn't sounded dangerous.

He called Rachel long enough to let her know Danny had been shot, but would be okay, and insisted there was no point in them coming to the hospital--he was sure Danny would call Grace later.

Meanwhile, a nurse put up something that kept him from seeing what they were doing to Danny's shoulder, and he gripped the rail in front of the window in annoyance. He wanted to know exactly what was going on.

But apparently he couldn't, so he watched them put Danny to sleep instead. If he focused on Danny's face, it was almost like any of the nights Steve had woken in the early hours, unable to fall back asleep, just watching Danny sleep instead until Steve was at peace enough to pass out. Danny was a thing of beauty when he was awake, always in motion--usually with his mouth and hands working at hyper speed--but even when he was still, his eyes never seemed to stop.

It was weird, at first, to see him so still as he slept, but then Steve had grown to appreciate the chance to stare without earning some smartass remark, to soak in Danny's scent and heat without anything else to distract him. He'd grown used to having that beside him at night, didn't like doing without, even for a couple of days, and the thought of losing it forever scared the shit out of him.

But it wasn't just at home. He'd had entire teams in the SEALs who were better trained for fighting and even more fit, but he'd never had a partner as good as Danny. No one who knew him so well, and no one as sharp or as willing to fight back when Steve was wrong--and sometimes even when he wasn't. He needed that almost as much as he needed Danny at home.

He needed Danny with him, on the job and off. He just hoped that nothing would snatch Danny away from both one day.

The door to the observation room opened, pulling Steve's focus long enough for him to see Chin walk in. "How's he doing?" Chin asked.

Steve went back to staring down at the operating table through the large glass wall. "Fine. I talked to him before they brought him in. The doctor says it should be a quick surgery."

"Good. Kono took Bremmer off to be booked. She's going to come by when she's done."

Steve nodded, 'Book 'em, Danno' echoing in his head. One more thing he couldn't bear the thought of living without.

"Ailstock's dead?" Steve asked. He was pretty sure, but....

"Yeah, Danny took him out with one shot," Chin said.

"Good." He'd have to have a talk with the governor about picking her security better. Maybe offer to help. He knew a few guys he'd served with who might be acceptable, if--

Loud beeping from below derailed his train of thought. "What's going on?" Steve said, gripping the rail in front of the window and pressing his head to the glass as if it would help him see better. Everyone was moving at a rapid pace, and he saw someone reach up and turn off the sound on the offending machine, and someone else yell towards the door, but none of them slowed down, and Danny's face was considerably grayer than it had been a minute ago.

"What's going on?" he said again, as if Chin should have an answer. Steve strained to hear, but the loud beeps had been all he'd been able to hear from the wrong side of the glass; he couldn't hear anything that was being said.

"Commander," he heard Carol say from the door, "Dr. Gruvel has asked that you leave."

"Fuck that," Steve growled.

"Commander, you promised her--"

"I'm not going anywhere until I know what's going on down there!"

"Commander, I'll explain if you will just follow me, please."

Steve turned his head to glare at her. "No!"

"Steve." Chin's hand was on Steve's shoulder. "You're not helping him."

Steve glared at Chin for a few deep breaths. "Shit." He raked a hand through his hair. "I know." He looked at Carol, who was halfway hiding behind the open door. He couldn't let Danny out of his sight. Didn't she get that? "Can't I stay?"

"No, sir. I'm sorry."

Chin was tugging on Steve's arm now, pulling him towards the door. "Come on. She's not going to tell you anything until you leave, so you'll only wonder if you stand here."

He was right, Steve knew he was right, it was just.... With one last look over his shoulder at the quick movements below, he let Chin lead him out of the room.

He stopped just on the other side of the door. "This is as far as I go," he said, daring Carol or Chin to tell him otherwise.

"It's fine," the nurse said before Chin could drag him any further. "They just aren't allowed to have you observing in there if there are complications."

"What kind of complications?" Steve asked, his jaw clenched.

"There was a problem with his blood pressure. That's all they said. It's not uncommon."

"But it's not common?"

"It's not uncommon," Carol repeated.

He hated hospitals for this very reason--more concerned about rules, regulations and what might get them sued than the fact that someone was about to go out of their mind worrying about what might be happening. He looked at Chin. "I have to go back in there."

"No, you don't." He looked at Carol. "Where's the nearest room where we can wait?"

She nodded at a door just off to her right. "Over there."

"You'll let us know as soon as anything changes?" At her nod, Chin took Steve's arm in a strong grip and guided him over to the room and inside. He followed Steve inside and closed the door, turning to lean back against it and giving Steve a level stare, as if daring him to try to leave.

"I can take you," Steve said, already calculating the exact spots he'd have to hit to do it as quickly as possible.

"You probably could," Chin said, not sounding concerned. "But you'd take enough of a hit that you wouldn't be able to go find out what happened to Danny. Plus," he said, shifting his weight to his other foot, "you'd have to explain it to Danny later."

Fuck. He tried to imagine explaining that one to Danny in such a way that didn't end with Danny moving out of the house, at the very least. "Okay," Steve said, dropping into one of the hard chairs against the wall. "Okay."

"You're not going to make a break for the door?"

"No."

Chin eyed him for an embarrassingly long time before finally nodding. "I don't blame you," Chin said, crossing to sit on the coffee table in front of Steve's chair. "I wouldn't want to be the one explaining that to Danny, either, especially not after he moved into your house."

Steve blinked. "How did you know that?"

Chin's laugh was almost as embarrassing as the stare a moment before. "You two really think you're that good at keeping secrets?"

"Who else knows?"

"Just Kono. Though I have a feeling the governor might have an inkling, judging from what she said after you went tearing into the hospital."

"What did she say?"

"Something about the impatience of love," Chin said. "Oh, and I heard her tell someone to check and see if Danny's old apartment building was a fire hazard."

Steve managed a little laugh at that. "It is a fire hazard."

"What do you care? He doesn't live there anymore."

"No, but it's a good excuse if anyone asks _why_ he doesn't live there anymore."

Chin gave him a small smile. "I understand not wanting to make it public," he said. "But is there a reason you didn't want us to know?"

"I'd have happily told all of Oahu," Steve said. "Danny didn't want it getting around until he was actually moved in." Steve took a deep breath. "He was worried something might happen before he did. Ironic, isn't it?" He sat back, his head thudding against the wall. "All that worry before he moves in, and he's not even living there 24 hours before he's lying on an operating table having 'complications.'"

Steve pushed himself out of the chair, but at Chin's move to block him, walked away from the door. "I'm not going out there," he said. "I just can't sit still."

"You're that afraid to explain your actions to Danny?" Chin teased.

He thought for a moment, then managed a small laugh. "Yes. God help me."

"I'd say I can't wait to tell him that, but I suspect the power it has would disappear if I was going to tell him anyway."

"You know me well, my friend."

"Then it's our little secret."

The door opened, and Carol stepped halfway inside. "He's okay," she said. "They're just finishing up, and then Dr. Gruvel will be in to talk with you."

"Can I see him?"

"Soon. She'll let you know more."

"Thank you," Steve said, with as much heartfelt gratitude as he could put into the words. It must've been enough, because Carol smiled and even managed to look him in the eye before she left again.

Steve watched the door close behind her, then fell into the nearest chair. "Fuck."

"Not exactly the relaxing Saturday any of us had planned," Chin said dryly.

"I don't care if someone threatens to blow up the island, we're all taking next Saturday off. No phones, no computers, no pagers. Off."

"It's funny how you think you could even manage that."

"I could," Steve insisted, imagining a boat in the middle of nowhere, just him, Danny, Longboards and the sun. "With Danny, I could."

Chin smiled. "It's good to see," he said. "Your father would've been happy to see you like this. He worried you drove yourself too hard."

The boat vanished in Steve's mind, his attention fully on Chin once more. "He said that?"

"A few times over the last couple of years. We'd have lunch sometimes, and he'd talk about you. He was so proud of what you'd done, but he worried you'd never find anything but the missions. That you were too much his son."

Steve tried to reconcile that with the image he had of his father, stoic and distant, a cop first, everything else second. It didn't fit. But the man who'd said, 'I love you son. I didn't say it enough,' who'd apologized for the lies he told to keep them safe? That man...this fit. "We've been working together for nearly six months and you never mentioned it."

"I...." Chin shrugged after a moment. "It seemed like a lot of pressure, and you were already under enough of that from your father's legacy. I didn't want to add to it. But now that you've found what he hoped you would...."

"Thanks, Chin." Steve clapped him on the shoulder. "Seriously, man. Thank you."

The door opened again, and Dr. Gruvel stepped inside. "I'm sorry about earlier," she said, "but you did promise to leave if we told you to."

"I know, doc, I'm sorry," Steve said, getting up and crossing the room to stand in front of her. "I wasn't thinking quite straight."

"Yes, well, hopefully we'll never have to be in this situation again, so let's forget about it. Detective Williams had a complication with a blood vessel, and lost a lot of blood very fast, and we had to get it under control. It's not uncommon."

Steve refrained from rolling his eyes. "So your nurse said."

"It's true. They don't happen every day, but it isn't uncommon. We know what to do, we're just not allowed to have non-hospital personnel observing once anything goes awry."

"Lawsuits are harder to fight with witnesses?"

"Lawsuits are harder to fight with untrained witnesses who don't actually know what they saw."

Steve nodded. "Fair enough. He's okay now?"

"Yes. We sealed the vessel and gave him more blood and finished cleaning up the wound. He should be out of recovery and into a room in about an hour. You can see him then."

"Can't I see him now?"

She shook her head. "He's still asleep, and there are people monitoring him, and I can't let you back there. You can see him in an hour. I suggest you go get something to eat." She looked down at his shirt and pants, which he hadn't been able to get the blood out of when he'd washed his hands. "Maybe find something else to wear."

"I--" Chin put his hand on Steve's arm, and he stopped. "Thanks, doc."

She nodded. "Come back in an hour and check in with the nurse's desk on three. They'll be able to tell you when you can see Detective Williams."

***

"We moved the Camaro into the parking lot," Chin said as they walked through the lobby, holding the keys out for Steve to take. When they reached the car, Steve pulled out the spare clothes he kept in the trunk.

He saw his vest in the trunk and looked at Chin. "Thanks," he said, meaning far more than just a thank you for moving the car and picking up his vest.

"Of course."

They ate in the hospital cafeteria, and Steve managed to keep his watch checks to about every sixty seconds, give or take, until finally enough minutes had ticked off that it was safe to go ask about Danny. The nurse at the desk said she'd been 'expecting him' in such a way that Steve wondered if Carol had warned the staff, but she directed him to room 311 without further comment.

Danny looked much like he had in the ER--pale, tired and hooked to far too many things. But he was alive, and that was the only part that mattered. Steve went over to his side, as he heard more than saw Chin take the chair by the door.

Steve put his hand on Danny's forearm, smiling when Danny's eyes opened. "Hey," he said, his voice scratchy--his morning voice, Steve called it, the sound of it enough to make Steve smile.

"Hey," Steve said, his thumb stroking Danny's wrist. "How do you feel now?"

"Kinda like I got run over by a truck. Did you see a semi in the operating room?"

"Not exactly," Steve said.

Danny frowned, blinking sleepily. "Not exactly?" he slurred. "What happened?"

"Nothing big. Don't worry." Steve's hand slid down Danny's wrist to hold Danny's hand. "You're fine."

"Nothing big?" His voice was a little stronger, and his eyes stayed open longer, too. "Define 'big.'"

"You had a slight complication. Nothing uncommon." Steve winced inwardly--now he was saying it. He didn't dare look at Chin. "The doctor will explain, but you're fine. I promise."

He looked like he wasn't sure, but then he sighed. "I'm talking, I can move everything. I suppose it couldn't have been too bad."

"I told you, you're fine."

"Maybe, but your definition of fine sometimes doesn't match that of normal humans." Danny's eyes were slipping closed again, and he looked as if he was drifting off to sleep, but his grip tightened on Steve's hand a little.

After a minute, Chin made an impatient sound, got up, dragged another chair over behind Steve and said, "Sit," before returning to his own seat. Steve threw him a thankful look and did as he was told.

***

Steve was still holding onto Danny's hand a little later, when Chin went out to take a call from Kono. Dr. Gruvel came in to a moment later to check on Danny. "Not as good as I was before you woke me up," he replied, morning voice still in full effect.

"Grouchy," she said, unfazed. "That's a good sign."

"Careful, or I might let him shoot you," Danny said, nodding in Steve's direction.

Steve held up both hands. "You'll have to get someone else to do your dirty work there. The doctor and I have an understanding."

"An understanding?"

"That's right, an understanding."

Danny looked at the doctor, then back at Steve, then at the doctor again. "Fine. I suppose that means I have to let you poke at me again?"

"Only for a little while. We need to keep you overnight--you lost a lot of blood. There was a minor complication--"

"So I've heard."

"Yes, well, don't worry. You lost a little more blood than we'd planned, but we've fixed that, and now we just want to make sure everything's okay."

Danny sighed. "I hate hospitals."

"Believe me, this is not the first time I've heard that," Dr. Gruvel said.

"It's not even the first time I've heard him say it," Steve told her.

"Whose side are you on, anyway?" Danny grumbled.

"Yours." Steve made a side-to-side motion with his head, wavering. "And hers, if hers is what'll get you well."

Danny rolled his eyes. "Traitor," he said, but he squeezed Steve's hand as he said it, so Steve figured he didn't really mean it.

Once she'd checked his bandages and was satisfied he was doing well, the doctor stepped back. "Visiting hours are over, but," she said, holding up a hand to forestall Steve's argument, "I know better than to expect you to go, and I don't need a call from the governor to deal with. Stay, but you know the rules," she added, pointing at Steve. "Anything happens, you get out of the way."

"What do you think is going to happen?" Steve asked.

"I don't think anything is," she said lightly, "but I know better than _not_ to explain the rules to _you_. And, by the way, that means when someone comes in to check on him, you get out of the way. Understood?"

Steve nodded. "Yes. Thank you."

"Seriously, nurses, kids and SEALs," Danny said, and Steve could hear the smirk, even in the slow, sleepy words, without looking.

He did look, though, as the doctor left the room. Because he wanted to stare at Danny for hours, to listen to him breathe and to know that he was going to be all right. "You're just jealous because you thought you were the only one whose orders I would follow."

"I'm still the only one whose orders you follow where it counts, babe," Danny said, his thumb stroking the back of Steve's hand, and okay, Jesus, he needed to not get so excited by that right now, because there was obviously no way they were doing anything tonight. Or for the next few days, at least.

"Go back to sleep," Steve said, not caring that the huskiness in his voice gave away just what Danny was doing to him.

Danny smiled, making it clear he knew exactly what he was doing. "In a minute," he said. "I want to call Grace. Where's my phone?"

"I, uh," Steve looked around, "don't know. Here, use mine." He handed it to Danny and listened, still holding Danny's hand, and soaking in the tone Danny only used with Grace as Danny told her the story about the evil bad man and how he was no match for their team.

He hung up after a few minutes and gave the phone back to Steve. "I want my phone back," he said around a yawn, but he let his eyes close, and a minute later, Steve could tell by the way Danny's hand relaxed in his that he was asleep. Steve didn't move his hand, though; he liked it just where it was.

Chin came back, tucking his phone in his pocket. "I saw the doctor leaving. How's he doing?"

"The doctor said he was good," Steve said quietly. "Might get to go home tomorrow, they just want to observe him tonight."

"Good. Kono says Bremmer confessed to the plot and a hell of a lot of other stuff. HPD is rounding up his other 'colleagues' now."

"Great. Any chance of dropping Bremmer into the deepest part of the ocean?"

Chin shook his head. "But I don't think he'll be seeing the outside of a prison ever again."

"That'll have to do," Steve said, stroking Danny's hand.

"I'm gonna head home," Chin said. "You need anything before I go?"

Steve smiled. "I've got everything I need," he said. "But thanks."

Chin nodded and walked out, leaving Steve alone to watch while Danny slept.

***

Dr. Gruvel made Danny the first stop on her shift late the next morning, pulling off the bandages that had already been changed twice since surgery. Someone had come in and changed them during the night--Steve having dutifully moved out of the way while they worked. When the morning nurse came in to do it again, Steve had even gone to get food, and if that was more because he couldn't stand to see the strain in Danny's face again when they changed the bandages again, he wasn't admitting to it.

"You'll need to change the bandages several times a day at first," the doctor said when she'd finished applying the new one. "You'll get instructions on that with your discharge papers, along with some painkillers in case you need them later."

"I feel fine," Danny insisted.

She laughed. "You only just had your IV removed," she said. "Wait until the drugs leave your system and then see if you can say the same."

"Can I just go _home_ now?" Danny said, looking at Steve, and the way he said 'home' most definitely did _not_ make Steve have to blink wetness back from his eyes.

"Almost. Only some paperwork left. But you can start getting dressed while I take care of that."

"Hallelujah."

She wrote a few more things on his chart and signed the bottom. "Let me give this to the nurse's station, and someone will be in with your papers and a wheelchair--no arguing, either of you, it's procedure--soon."

She took the chart and left, and Danny turned to Steve. "I'm going to assume the clothes I was wearing yesterday are pretty much ruined."

"Afraid so. But when I went to get breakfast this morning, I got your spare clothes out of the car." He held up the bag he'd laid by his feet when he'd come back. "And they found your phone, brought it in this morning, so it's in here, too."

"My hero," Danny said, ruining the accompanying smile with a yawn.

Steve frowned. "Are you sure you should be leaving so soon?"

"Shut up," Danny said. "If they hear you, they might want me to stay. And I want to go home. Now. Because I want that big comfy bed, and I want you sleeping stretched out beside me instead of slouched over me in a chair all night."

"I didn't sl--"

"Oh, yes, you did."

Steve shrugged. "Fine. I did."

"As you should have," Danny said, giving him a smile. He had more color in his face, and while he was definitely still in morning voice territory, his words weren't as slurred.

"Well, if you want to go home," Steve said, pulling clothes out of the bag, " you'd better get dressed."

Steve helped Danny into his clothes, trying not to react when Danny hissed as his sleeve was pulled carefully over his shoulder. He was in one piece, more or less, and he was alive. That was all that mattered.

Danny didn't argue about the wheelchair, waiting patiently in it while Steve insisted on getting the car. "Tell me the truth," Steve said, after Danny was buckled into the car and they were pulling away, "you only accepted the chair because you were afraid they were going to make you stay if you didn't, right?"

"Of course not. Rules are rules, and I, unlike you, respect and abide by rules."

The smile on his face said otherwise. "Liar."

"Shut up and take me home."

***

When they pulled up to the house, Steve ran around to open the door before Danny could manage it. He helped Danny out, keeping a hand firmly on his arm all the way into the house, just in case. Danny looked at him strangely, but didn't say a word until Steve tried to get him to go straight to bed.

"I am not an invalid," Danny muttered, making his way to the couch instead. "I think I can handle sitting upright perfectly well, thank you."

Steve held out the pages of instructions that they'd been given with Danny's discharge papers. "The papers say you have to--"

"Will you put that away? I know what they say. They say I have to rest and not move around a lot, which I can do perfectly well from a couch." He sat down on the far side of the couch, leaving Steve in the middle of the room holding out the paper. "Oh, for--would you put that down and come over here?" Danny said, rolling his eyes.

Letting out a long breath, Steve dropped the papers on the coffee table, dropping down onto the couch on Danny's good side. "Do you want the painkillers?" Steve asked.

Danny shook his head, shifting until his arm and thigh were pressed against Steve's. "I'll need them to sleep later, I'm sure. No sense drugging myself yet. I need to call Grace."

He pulled his phone out and called to say he was home and fine, and that he'd talk to her tomorrow. After a loud, detailed description, which Steve could hear perfectly, of how Tommy had ridden a skateboard under a railing at school Danny told her to stay off skateboards and he would talk to her tomorrow.

Danny put the phone back in his pocket and picked up the TV remote, flipping through several movie channels before settling on a movie Steve didn't recognize. "What's this?"

"The Sting," Danny replied. "You've never seen it?" Steve shook his head. "Great movie," Danny said. "Newman and Redford at their best. Plus, no one blows anything up or drives a car off a cliff or anything else that might give you ideas, so there's a bonus."

"I don't need movies to give me ideas like that."

"Tell me about it," Danny said, his words starting to slur a little as he sunk into Steve's side. He was asleep in no time, and Steve watched the movie, careful not to move any more than he had to so as not to wake Danny.

The con was wrapping up when Danny stirred, blinking awake and stretching a little with a wince. Steve rubbed his arm where it had started to fall asleep. "Seriously, you've been sitting there without moving the whole time, haven't you?" Danny said.

Steve shrugged. "You were asleep."

"I'd have slept through it if you decided to move," Danny said, but he was smiling, so Steve figured he hadn't done anything too wrong.

"Well now that you're up, I'm going to get something to drink. Want anything?"

"A beer?"

Steve shook his head. "The papers say--"

"I _know_ what the papers say," Danny said, adding a long-suffering sigh. "I was kidding. Water, actually--I swear they replaced my blood with sand or something, as thirsty as I am."

He got water for Danny and tea for himself--he thought it might be rude to drink beer in front of him when he couldn't have it. They watched another movie, or rather Steve did while Danny dozed. When the movie was over, Steve made spaghetti--easy to make, easy for Danny to eat.

Steve was almost done making dinner when he heard a noise and turned to see Danny standing in the doorway. "You should be on the couch," Steve said, pointing a wooden spoon at Danny.

"You're not my mother," Danny griped, leaning carefully against the doorway.

"No, but you still shouldn't be wandering around. The papers said--"

"Will you stop with the papers already?" Danny growled. "I'm sick of hearing about the papers. I have been taking care of myself for a considerable number of years, and this is not the first time I've been shot, so I think I know what I can and cannot do."

Steve sucked in a deep breath through his nose. "Okay. When you fall over in the floor and I have to carry you back to the ER, I'll remind you of that."

"Oh, my God, you are the worst mother hen ever. Would you stop?"

"If you'll sit down at the table, I'll stop."

For a moment he thought Danny might argue, just to spite him. But then he sat down, sanity apparently winning out--and hey, look at that, Steve hadn't been sure that was possible with Danny. Then again, was that a bad sign? If he wasn't arguing about sitting down, maybe he really was about to pass out. Maybe they should go back to the hospital.

"Seriously, Steven, stop it."

Steve blinked, trying to figure out what he'd done. "Stop what?"

"The thinking. I can see your brain churning, and no, I do not need to go back to the hospital just because I sat down."

That...was a little creepy. "I wasn't thinking that," Steve muttered, but he could feel his ears getting red.

"Haven't I told you that you have a tell?" Danny said. "Just stop thinking and finish the food. I'm hungry."

Hungry had to be good, Steve thought, so he brought the food over to the table, only sneaking little glances at Danny as they ate, and trying not to be obvious about it.

"I'm not going to suddenly choke," Danny said, his voice reaching 'why did you hide grenades in my car without telling me' exasperated.

"I didn't say anything."

"You didn't have to. You're watching me more than your food."

"I wasn't watching you."

"You were, and while normally I'd be flattered, this time I'm sure it's only because you're waiting for me to faceplant in the spaghetti and need the Heimlich."

Steve counted to five. "I wasn't waiting for you to faceplant in the spaghetti," he said, calmly. "I was just...keeping an eye on you. The pap--"

"I swear to God, if you say 'the papers say' one more time, I will make you eat them."

"Fine," Steve said, putting down his fork with a loud clank, the last 36 hours catching up with him. "I apologize for being concerned. I didn't know I wasn't allowed to be concerned when my partner, the man living in my house and sharing my bed, nearly died right in front of me. Twice!"

"I didn't nearly die. I was never in danger of dying."

"You didn't see," Steve said, his words gaining volume and speed. "You slept through it all. If you'd been on the other side of it--there was so much blood, and then I was watching the surgery and they made me leave, and the machines were screaming, and...dammit, I thought you were dying! And now I'm just not supposed to care? You were worked up that something might happen before you moved in, and now something has and you think I'm, what, just supposed to laugh off the big hole in your shoulder?"

Danny's lips thinned. "Okay," he said, his voice quieter, calming, and Steve realized he was breathing as if he'd just run a mile. "Okay. I get it. I've had my own near death observations with you, in case you have forgotten."

"I haven't forgotten," Steve said shortly. "I seem to remember a lot of nagging, too."

"Nagging, yes. Treating you like one of Grace's china dolls? No."

Steve thought about that for a moment. "That is true," he admitted. "You didn't even pick me up from the hospital when I broke my arm."

"You told me not to. 'Find the murderer,' you said. 'That's more important.' And, _unlike you_ , I listened to what you asked me to do."

Taking another deep breath, Steve pushed his spaghetti around on his plate. "Okay," he said finally.

"So no more treating me like I'm going to break?"

"No."

He saw Danny nod out of the corner of his eye. "The words 'the papers say' do not come out of your mouth anymore?"

"No."

"And no more orders?"

Steve let his lips curved up just a little. "I thought you liked it when I gave you orders."

"In some situations, maybe. But being ordered to sit down doesn't really count."

"Not even if it's to sit on my--"

"Enough," Danny said, turning pink. His grin matched the one Steve knew he was wearing on his own face, though. "I don't think I can eat anymore," Danny said, pushing the plate away.

Steve nodded. "I'm done, too." He raised an eyebrow at Danny. "Do you want to do the dishes, or can I?"

"I swear, you are such a pain in the ass--and stuff whatever horrible pun was about to come out of your mouth back down your throat."

Laughing, Steve picked up the dishes, rinsed them and put them in the dishwasher. "Another movie?" he asked, standing over Danny's chair.

"Actually, at the risk of you having a panic attack because I'm tired, I think I'm about ready for bed."

"No panic attack," Steve said, more relieved that Danny was being sensible than anything, even if he knew better than to show it. "We should change the bandages, though."

"Give me those painkillers first, then," Danny said. "I'm gonna need it once you do that."

While Danny took the pills, Steve locked up, then followed Danny up the stairs, glad Danny couldn't see behind him. He didn't need to know Steve's hands were raised the entire way, just in case he needed to help.

"Don't think I didn't notice that," Danny said as they walked into the bathroom.

"What?" At Danny's hard stare, Steve shrugged. "I'm a SEAL. We like to be prepared."

"Whatever. Just fix these things so I can sleep."

Making a note that apparently the painkillers made Danny far more malleable, Steve did as he was told, helping Danny get cleaned up a bit at the same time, all the while thankful Danny hadn't tried to insist on a shower.

When Danny was in bed, Steve took a quick shower and came back to the bedroom, smiling at the sight of Danny sound asleep. He looked good there. Belonged there. And Steve wanted him there every night and every day.

Steve just didn't often get what he wanted.

He turned off the light and climbed into bed onto his side to watch Danny sleep, his face still clear in the moonlight. Steve let one hand rest on Danny's chest, finding comfort in the steady rise and fall.

To his surprise, Danny's hand moved to cover his. "I'm not going anywhere," Danny muttered, still half-asleep.

"I should hope not," Steve said in a near whisper. "I don't think you'd get very far this drugged up."

"Idiot," Danny said, giving Steve's hand a little squeeze. "You know what I mean. You're stuck with me."

Steve smiled. "My own personal albatross?"

"Hey, just because fate decided you needed someone better looking than you to take you down a peg every day...."

"Fate has a sense of humor," Steve said.

"But it knows what it's doing," Danny replied. "So go to sleep. I'll still be here in the morning. Goodnight."

Letting out one more deep breath, Steve settled into the mattress. "Night, Danno."

\---

END

**Author's Note:**

> Want to learn more about me and my writing? Visit my page at <http://www.jamiemeadowswrites.com/>


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